Coworking with Samantha Lawrence

On Wednesdays, we schedule our weekly 1:1 with HR Brew’s readers. Want to be featured in an upcoming edition? Click here to introduce yourself.

Samantha Lawrence “fell into the world of HR'' through her love of relationship-building and people. She started her career at Random House as an assistant on the people team, and after moving up the ranks during more than a decade there, she moved to Hired (then Vettery) to build the company’s people strategy from the ground up. Lawrence suggested that being the type of person “to raise my hand” gave her the confidence to step into a role where she would be wearing a number of different hats each day, and she now keeps an eye out for other “hand raisers” when she’s building her team.

How would you describe your specific job to someone who doesn’t work in HR?

I’m responsible for the entire employee life cycle for our team members at Hired. In my role, I develop engaging strategies to build a people-first culture, where employees feel motivated, supported, and fulfilled to show up to work each day. My day-to-day responsibilities span various HR functions, ranging from developing hiring plans, coaching and mentoring our employees to help them identify and foster core strengths, working with our senior leadership on organizational design to help meet and exceed our goals, and managing compliance, DEIB, performance, benefits and compensation programs—there are never two days in a row alike!

What’s the best change you’ve made at a place you’ve worked?

As Hired transitioned to a remote-first workplace, we needed new strategic and engaging ways to make sure that our employees felt seen, valued, and recognized for their contributions, regardless of where they chose to work. I helped establish three special tiers of employee recognition, to create a company culture that celebrates wins, achievements, and the embodiment of our core values on an individual, team, and company-wide level.

What’s the biggest misconception people might have about your job?

There are definitely times when I’ve encountered people who have an antiquated perception of people leaders being the “police” or enforcers of a company. Of course, part of our job is to ensure compliance and reduce risk where possible, but that is only a small fraction of our responsibilities. Most importantly, I pride myself on being a trusted, strategic partner and advisor to my peers on our executive team. I consistently work to create a workplace environment where individuals and team members thrive, and are empowered to consistently deliver on our company goals and initiatives.

What’s the most fulfilling aspect of your job?

Without a doubt, the people. At Hired, I’m beyond fortunate to be surrounded by an amazing, hard-working, dedicated team that consistently celebrates wins, regroups after challenges, and strives to deliver the best possible talent marketplace for our candidates and clients.

What trend in HR are you most optimistic about? Why?

I’m most optimistic to see companies adapting and embracing remote and hybrid flexibility which continues to be ranked as a top benefit for job-seekers on our platform. The benefits offered by a distributed workforce have been multifold for both employers and job-seekers: It levels the playing field for candidates located outside of traditional tech markets, working parents, and those with disabilities to access opportunities, and helps employers expand their pipelines with quality, diverse talent from all over the globe.

What trend in HR are you least optimistic about? Why?

I’m most concerned to see DE&I initiatives continue to fall on the back burner for many businesses. While a growing number of companies pledged to DE&I commitments over the last few years, a multitude of organizations are revealing there is still a lot of improvement to be made—especially within the tech sector. It remains pivotal that companies be transparent about where their gaps are, and double down with measurable goals and strategies to address them, especially in times of market uncertainty and a greater need for efficiency. A few ways companies can contribute to a more equitable workforce are by offering transparency into wages, leveraging technology that helps them reduce bias, and hiring candidates on the basis of their skills, rather than their pedigree.

Tell us one new or old HR tech product or platform that’s made your life easier, and why.

My team and I are currently loving Pave, a compensation benchmarking tool we’ve been using for just about a year and a half. The fact that it plugs into HRIS, ATS, and cap tables to give up-to-date data has been extremely helpful to us especially as we’ve seen different shifts in the hiring markets—no more waiting for annual salary surveys!